Stocking and method of making same



Nov. 21, 1939. J. KUGELMAN El AL 2,180,593

' STOCKING AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed Jan. 2, .1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 QACK KUGELMAN j dose? EARNes-r GARRETT Nov, 21, 1939. J. KUGELMAN EI'AL 2,180,593

STOCKING AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed Jan. 2, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 lo I frweizzor .JAcK KUGELMAN J J doszvu EnRuasT GARRETT flfiiorney fashioned hosiery has been manufactured in Patented Nov. 21, 1939 Garrett, Philadelphia,

signor to said Kugelman Application January 2," 1

2 Claims. This invention relates to full-fashioned hosiery and more particularly to an improved method of manufacturing the same.

Heretofore and prior to this invention, fullaccordance with one or the other of two generally established methods. According to the first method, the leg of the stocking is knit in the form of a flat web upon a flat-bed full-fashioned knitting machine, known in the art as a legger, the leg fabric so knit being then transferred to a second knitting machine, known as a footer, on which the foot of the stocking is knitted to complete the full stocking blank. The fiat fabric so produced is provided with selvaged edges which when joined together by a seaming operation result in the formation of a shaped or fullfashioned stocking. The leg fabric initially produced on the legger includes not only the leg proper but also the reduced ankle portion and heel tabs, while the foot portion which is knitted on the footer in continuation of the leg includes Y not only the sole and toe portions but also the instep part of the stocking. In accordance with established practice, the heel, toe and sole portions of the stocking blank are of reinforced construction.

.According to the second method now in general use, the complete stocking blank including leg and foot'portions is knittedupon-asingle knitting machine, known as a single unit machine. This machine, embodying as it' does mechanisms for effecting upon it the knitting of the leg and foot portions of a stocking in a single operation, is much more complicated in construction and, accordingly, more expensive than the more generally employed legger. Additionally, to replace existing leggers and footers with themore recently developed single unit machines, in the case of most hosiery manufacturers, would involve an economic loss which would be disproportionate to whatever benefits and advantages might be gained in fabricating-hosiery on' the single unit machines instead of on the leggers and footers now in general use.

Recognizing, however, the inherent advantages in fabricatinga stocking in one operation, the present invention has as its object to provide a method whereby this may be substantially accomplished without necessitating any changeover from the standard leggers to the single unit machines, it being contemplated by this new method to knit upon the standard legger machine and in a single operation a substantially complete stocking blank which includes the leg,

JAN

METHOD OF MAKING SAME Jack Kugelman, Abington,

v with the old and long-established practice.

' By means of this method, the standard leggers ing such as the toe PATEVNTETOFFICE A and Joseph Earnest P .said Garrett as- 937, Serial 'No 118,870

instep, sole, toe and upper heel portions, leaving only to be separately knitted the lower heel tabs which originally had been formed as parts of the leg fabric produced on the legger in accordance may be employed to produce what are in effect single unit stockings, there being no break or line of demarcation whatsoever between the nonreinforced or sheer leg and instep portions of the stocking blank.

. Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear more fully hereinafter, it being understood that the invention consists substantially in the construction; location-and relative arrangement of the stocking parts as well as in the method of producing the stockings, all as will be described in detail hereinafter, as shown in the accompanying drawings and as finally pointed out -in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure l is an elevational view of a stocking constructed in accordance with and embodying the principles of the present invention,

Figures 2, 3, 4 and 5 show the lower portion of the stocking web as it appears during different stages in the manufactur of the stocking, and

Figure 6- illustrates diagrammatically the stitches of the fabric in the immediate vicinity of the loose courses formed in opposite sides of the stocking blank.

Referring now to the drawings, it will be observed that the upper or .leg portion I 0 of the stocking fabric is knitted upon the standard flatbed knitting machine (legger) in accordance with the established practice well known in the art, the fabric being knitted in the form of a fiat web having selvaged edges and the we being fashioned by gradually decreasing the width of the 4 fabric as the knitting progresses toward the lower extremity of the web. This fashioning or narrowing is effected by transferring predetermined numbers of end loops on each side of the stocking inwardly toward thecente of the stocking web and at the same time re cing correspondingly the travel of the reciprocating yarn carriers which lay the yarn upon the sinkers and dividers and along the needles of the machine to form the successive courses of knitted loops. The fabric which composes the leg portion ill of the stocking is ordinarily knitted of a single yarn, usually silk, while other parts of the stockpart II, the sole part I2,

of a heavier yarn or of aplurality of yarns to provide adequate reinforcement and strength in these latter parts. As the knitting progresses into the fashioned ankle portion I l of the stocking fabric and approaches the upper limits of the high splice heel reinforcements l5-i5, three carriers are thrown into operation; one of which lays the body silk along the entire bank of needles employed in the knitting operation" while the remaining two operate successively to lay the reinforcing yarn along so much of the needles as are employed to knit the: said high splice heel reinforcements. V

Up to this point, the knitting of the stocking in accordance with the present method is the same as and follows the well-known established practice. a In accordance with this latter practice, when the knitting reached the point where the high splice joined the heel pocket tabs at approximately the lines iii-l6 of Figure 2, the further knitting of the central or non-reinforced part of the stocking web was interrupted, the knitting being continued from that point on to form only the opposed reinforced heel tabs, which latter projected below the horizontal line along which the stocking leg was subsequently transferredto the needles of the footing machine.

According to the present method, thre is no interruption in the knitting of the sheer or nonreinforced part of the stocking, the leg portion I0 and the instep portion ll being knit in a single, continuous operation so that there is no line of demarcation between these portions. Also, simultaneously as the instep portion I1 is being knitted, the reinforced sole portionsIB-lii are knitted as well as the reinforced toe portions I9-l9. It will be understood, of course, that in knitting the flat'web fabric shown in Figure 2, the operation is much the same as in knitting the leg of a stocking, the reinforced parts being formed by extra carriers which lay the reinforcing yarn along the needles in the manner well understood in the art. As the knitting progresses well into the sole part of the stocking foot, the narrowing mechanisms of the machine are operated to further shape the stocking blank, fashioning sutures 20-20- being located in the reinforced toe parts of the stocking blank as shown in Figure 2. By the-proper adjustment of the stops for the several carriers, the shape of the reinforced areas of the blank may be varied as desired, that shown in Figure 2 being representative of a typical stocking blank constructed in accordance: with the present invention, It will be understood, of course, that the knitting of the blankproceeds in the usual manner with'the successive courses interlooped, each course extending transversely of the web from selvage edge to selvage edge thereof. During the operation of knitting the flat web shown in Figure 2, provision is made for. the necessary subsequent joinder thereto of the lower -lieel tabs (see elements 2l-2l of Figures 3, 4 and? and for this purpose loose courses IB -IG (see Figure 6) are interposed in the opposed reinforced parts of the web, these loose cours'es being coincident with the lines Iii-l6 (see Figure 2). These loose courses are relativelyjfew in number, say 2 or 3 courses, and in addition-are knit of the basic silk or yarn of the stocking, that is, without reinforcement, the reinforcement yarn carriers being thrown out of operation during the knitting of these loose courses. I

With the web knit as hereinbefore described and as shown in Figure 2, it is transferred by means of a'transfer bar to a second flat-bed knitting machine, known as ,a heeling machine, on which the above-mentioned heel tabs 28-21 are knitted as extensions of the originally fabricated web. These heel tabs 2I-2i spring from the loose courses Hi -i6 and extend for whatever length or number of interlooped courses is predetermined to be proper. Actually, the tabs are of a length (the dimension being measured Wale-wise) not less than the transverse width of its associated loose course or courses It.

When the heel tabs 2i-2i have been knit as integral extensions to the main stocking web, the resultant structure is as shown in Figure 3 and following the removal of this structure from the heeling machine (in which both of the'heel tabs are simultaneously knit), the stocking blank is transferred to a circular looping machineupon the needles of which are transferred the loose knit, non-reinforced loops of the courses Et -i6 of the fabric shown in Figure 3. The loose courses Et -it so transferred to the looping machine needles are preferably those immediately adjacent the close-knit reinforced courses of the sole portions l8-l8 and when such transfer has been effected the sole portionsv Ill-i8 are severed at opposite sides thereof immediately in advance of each of the said loose courses Mi -I6, as indicated at 22-22 in Figure 4. Withthe web severed at the opposite sides thereof, as at 22-22, a resultant structure is obtained in which the heel tabs 2I-2l may each be extended asprolongations of the heel parts l5-l 5, at the same time that there is provided the freely disposed edges, 23-23 which are, of course, not scivaged.

Thereafter, and while the said edges 23-23 are still-engaged by the needles of the looping machine, the inner edges 24-24 of the heel tabs are also transferred or topped onto the looper needles so that the edges 23-23 and the edges 24-24 are intimately and coincidentally related, whereuponthey may be looped together ,upon operation of the looping machine to form the blank of Figure 5.

..tending as it does course-wise of the fabric,

ives or stretches sufliciently to match the linear dimension of the inner edge 24 of the heel tab-and it is further to be noted that when the edges 23 and 24 have been properly looped together, as at 25, the line of juncture appears no more noticeable than the ordinary suture line present in stockings of conventional construction.

It will be observed from the foregoing that with the exception of the heel pocket tabs 2l-2l the entire stocking fabric is knitted in-the form of a flat fashioned web upon the conventional full-fashioned flat-bed knitting machine of the legger type, the knitting of the fabric being effected in a continuous operation without necessitating removal of the fabric from the machine until after it has been completely fabricated. To produce the blank of. Figure 2, no structural changes are required in the knitting machine, it being only necessary to make those ordinary adjustments of the carrier stops, the narrowing and other associated mechanisms to provide the necessary shape to and reinforcements in the stocking web. These adjustments are such as are within the capacity of any skilled operator to make.

It will be understood, of course, that the invention is susceptible of various changes from time to time without departing from the real spirit or general principles thereof and it is accordingly intended to claim the same broadly, as Well as specifically, as indicated by the appended claims.

What is claimed as new and useful is:

1. A full-fashionedstocking blank knitted in the form of a fiat Web having opposed selvedged edges and including non-reinforced leg and instep fabrics and reinforced high splice heel, sole and toe fabrics, the main body yarn of said nonreinforced leg and instep fabrics being extended throughout every course of said reinforced fabrics, said high splice heel and sole fabrics being split to accommodate therein separately knitted reinforced heel pocket tabs, the edges of said sole fabrics along the lines of said splits being formed of loose courses knitted of said body yarn in continuous extensions of the corresponding plain knit courses of the non-reinforced instep fabric, and separately knitted reinforced heel pocket tabs disposed at opposite sides of said web and interposed between the proximate edges of the said high splice heel and sole fabrics, the inner selvedge edges of said heel tabs being respectively secured to the non-reinforced loose courses in said sole fabrics.

2. A method of manufacturing full-fashioned hosiery which consists in knitting on a convenstocking blank in the form of a fiat web and having opposed selvedged edges and including reinforced toe, sole and high splice heel parts, the latter being knitted substantially in the form of a U, the knitted area within the U-shaped reinforced area constituting the instep of the stocking and being plain knitted in continuation of the plain knitted leg portion of the stocking, the body yarn of which said leg and instep portions are plain knitted being extended into and through the reinforced areas disposed upon opposite sides of the instep portion; in knitting exclusively of said body yarn loose courses in said last-mentioned reinforced areas along lines defining the lower edges of said high splice heel parts; in knitting heel tab extensions upon the opposite side parts of said reinforced U, said extensions being joined to the blank along said line defining the lower edges of said high splice heel parts and immediately above said non-reinforced loose courses; in so severing the blank in said last-mentioned reinforced'areas along courses downwardly removed from said line of juncture of said heel tabs to said blank as to leave intact one or more of said loosely knit courses; in angularly relating said heel tabs to the free severed edges of the blank so as to render the inner selvedge edges of the heel tabs coincident with the said loose courses along the severed edges of the blank; and in looping said coincident edges together to provide a blank ready to be longitudinally seamed 'to form a completed stocking.

JACK KUGELMAN. JOSEPH EARN'EST GARRETT.

tional full-fashioned flat bed legger machine a'. 

